Search America's historic newspaper pages from 1789-1924 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present. Chronicling America is sponsored jointly by the National Endowment for the Humanities external link and the Library of Congress. Learn more

Download & Play

Questions

Newspaper Page Text

Jr.
H^nyS^fSFLV ^Saturfay Evening,
Curios and Oddities
NEW POSTAGE STAMP MACHINE
An engineer of Frankfort has in
vented an automatic postage stamp
selling machine which not only sells
the stamps but sticks them on the let
ter.
The machine possesses the additional
advantage of being impossible to rob.
As the German government postoffice
has for some time past been seeking a
satisfactory stamp selling automatic
machine, Herr Becker's patent is being
subjected to a series of trials with a
view to its ultimate adoption.
LIVING ON TWOPENCE A DAY
DAY
Life on twopence a day was one of
the remarkable possibilities suggested
at the fifty-ninth anniversary of the
Vegetarian society, celebrated in Man
chester yesterday. It came from Albert
Broadbent, secretary of the society,
in a paper on "Mistakes in Nutrition.''
He denied the common assertion that
people nowadays eat too much. On the
other hand, he said 10,000,000 of the
very poor were 25 per cent underfed.
He was an advocate of inexpensive
feeding.
He did not advocate too little food,
but a generous supply, even tho it
might be monotonous.
Life, he added, can be sustained in
the fullest condition of vigor on less
than twopence a day, if it becomes
necessary, and the body at the same
time would be supplied with all the eB
Bentials of nutrition. A dietary at less
than sixpence a day, where no two
days in the week at dinner was any
dish repeated, was thtte given:
Breakfast: Porridge, bread and but
ter, tea, stewed figs or raisins.
Midday: Two savories and two
sweets.
Evening meal: Bread and butter,
home-made cheese, potted meat, and
jam.
Supper: Cocoa and biscuits.
In the discussion that followed, one
lady expressed the view that not only
did animals feel pain, but plants also
probably felt and thought.
W. Harrison, the treasurer, related
an experiment made while living in a
cottage. He bought threepenny worth
of lentils, barley, potato and onions,
and boiled them all together. He ate
when he was hungry, and the food
lasted three days. He never felt in the
least dissatisfied.
T. Owen of Oswestry stated that at
the age of 69 he now had more vitality
than when he was a young man. He
ate two meals a day, consisting of
With the Long Bow
9D SASAKI SOT THE QVVX OSS}
THESE* CTHZR ?KH*0Sj HS&
CESATOB TKUUS HEBEB S&
"5y nature'* walk*, ahoot folly a* It fllOA."
Hbw Henry Sogers Cam Very Near Skinning Ua In the Famous Reading Ball-
road DealOur Plans Regarding the Beorganiaation of the Road Upset by
Black Thursday in Wall Street in Which We Lost EverythingA
Lucky Find.
Ed Pierce of the Grafton Record is rushing around lending umbrellas to
feeble-looking old men who have every appearanoe of making their wills. The
reason is apparent.
Several years ago a Boston young man let an aged millionaire use his um-
brella on his way home from church on a rainy Sunday, and when the aged
millionaire died the Boston young man was insulted by a check for $6,000. The
aged man had left this for him in his little will and the administrators actually
gave it up.
This recalls the time when we loaned Russell Sage fifty cents. The old
financier had gone downtown without his small change and had "stood off" the
conductor. He had, of course, nothing for his lunch and other small extras. He
struck us, we were at that time engaged in financing the Golconda, Utopia &
Bonanzaville railroad project in Wall street, and secured 50 cents. In his will
we noticed that he left a thousand dollars apiece to his relatives. We have
said nothing to Mrs. Sage of this little matter of 50 cents. It is a mere trifle.
But, speaking of money matters, the incident recalls the striking piece of
good fortune we ran into in the ear^r '90's when we helped Henry Rogers out
of a bad box. H. H. Rogers was then comparatively unknown. He had nothing,
comparatively speaking, to his present wealth. Probably he had not more than
thirty or forty million dollars all told. We were knocking around in Wall street
then looking for an opening and were at that time handling the famous Reading
railroad deal as a sort of side issue until something better showed up. Henry
wanted us to let him in on the deal, which promised to be a profitable one. We
hesitated for a time, but finally told him it would take a good deal of money
to put the deal thru.
"What do you want?" said Henry, going down into his clothes and pulling
out a sizable roll.
I want a million dollars out of you."
Henry peeled off ten crisp $100,000 bills and we crowded them down into
our waistcoat pocket and promptly rorgot all about the transaction. The next
day was "Black Tuesday" in Wall street. Everything was Bwept away and
the Reading deal went to eternal smash, taking every cent we had. The next
day we met Rogers, much excited.
"Everything gone?" he asked,
i "Everything. Not enough left to wad a gun.M
"Curses!"
"Oh, we'll get it back again some day."
That night when we retired we noticed a bunch of paper in our vest and
to our surprise pulled out Henry's one million dollars that he had lost in the
Beading deal. ft was a fortunate find for it came in very handy. The board-
ing-house lady was becoming clamorous. We pulled a $100,000 bill on her, told
her to take her board out of it and give us the change. That held her.
Rogers was rather sore at us for some time over his loss, but he knew, of
eourse, that his investment was one of the chances of war, so to speak, and of
course he had no just complaint to make. He told me afterwards that he made
it all up the next week by skinning Henry Gates out of two millions and a half
on the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton reorganization.
Speaking of sudden financial interruptions of the calm current of life, G.
W. McGraw, who has been selling patent medicines on the streets of Emporia,
Kan., received word while there that he is one of the three heirs to the $12,000,-
000 estate left by his uncle, Thomas McGraw, a banker, who died recently in
Detroit, Mich.
Mr. McGraw took the news philosophically. Asked what he intended to
do with so much money, he replied that selling snake oil suited him pretty well,
and that there were lots of places he intended to visit with this valuable specific.
McGraw is 66 years old and a veteran of the civil war, having served in the
142d New York. He has traveled extensively, making a good living in prohibi-
tion districts as a vendor of patent medicines.
The calm current of McGraw's life was not deflected by the plunk made
by the sizable sum of $4,000,000 dropped into its channel.
How would four millions left you by a rich uncle affect your ca'm content?
Would it rattle your windows and shake down your plaster in spots or would
you continue to vend snake oil or carry on whatever gainful occupation corre-
sponds to this vocation in your own life?
The faculty of the Fargo high school received the following note explaining
the reason for the absence of one of the students:
"My son will be unable to attend school for a few days, as he has just
shaved himself for the first time." A. J. R.
bread or biscuits, fruit and nuts, tak
ing 40 to 45 minutes to each meal. He
took 50 to 10 bites to every mouthful,
and ate nothing for eighteen hours out
of the twenty-four.
He was always ready for work, and
his brain was never clouded.London
Leader.
THE FATE OF OLD BOOTS
What becomes of old boots and shoes
hitherto been almost as puzzling a
?'he
roblem as where all the pins go to.
solution, however, is given in to
day's issue of the "Boot and Shoe
Trades Journal."
"Old boots and shoes of leather,"
the journal says, are cut up into small
Jnto
deces, and then are put for two days
chloride of sulphur, the effect of
which is to make the leather very hard
and brittle.
"When this is fully effected, the ma
terial is withdrawn from the action of
the chloride of sulphur, washed with
water, dried and ground to powder. It
is then mixed with some substance that
wil cause it to adhere together, such
as shellac or other resinous material, or
even good glue, and a thick solution of
strong gum.
"It is afterwards pressed into molds
to form combs, buttons and a variety
of other useful obiects.
Prussiate of potash is also made out
of old leather. It is heated with pearl
ash and old iron hoops in a large pot.
The nitrogen and carbon form cyano
gen, and then unite with the iron and
potassium. The soluble portions are
dissolved out, and the resulting salt,
added to one of iron, produces the well
known Prussian blue, either for dyeing
purposes or as a pigment."London
Express.
EARLY SPELLING REFORM
An English naval officer tells this
an early seplling reformer, says a
writer in the New York Tribune. Of
MStford, the historian of Greece, Ma
cauley wrote: "Mltford piques him
self on spelling better than any of his
neighbors, and this is not only in an
cient names, which he mangles in de
fiance both of custom and reason, but
in the most ordinary words of the Eng
lish language." In Mitford's history
the following "mangled" words may
be found: Controul, studdy, labored,
labor, endevored, litterature, maroding,
iland, pronuntiation, favor, spred, flor
lsh, etc. "W!hy don't you spell your
name 'Feilding as your family does,
not 'Fielding'?" said Lord Denbigh to
his relative, the author of Tom Jones."
The answer was triumphant: "For the
very good reason that I am the first ot
the family that could spell."
MANY OTHERS LIKE THIS
Rarely has a double meaning turned
with more deadly effect upon an inno
cent perpetrator than in an advertise
ment lately appearing in an English
newspaper. He wrote: "Wanteda
gentleman to undertake the sale of a
patent medicine. The advertiser guar
antees it will be profitable to the under
taker."
LOOKING FOR HIS EAR
An English naval ofcer tells this
story of a servant named Andrews:
"We were practicing with a pistol in
my brother's quarters, and Andrews
was in the small dressing room adjoin
ing, when a ball went thru the door
and clipped off part of an ear. Most
men would have made some remark.
He did not, and we knew nothing about
it until by chance, looking into the
room, we saw him groping about under
the table for something he had lost.
'What are you looking for, Andrews?'
said my brother. He drew up, stood at
attention, and replied in an apologetic
tone, as if deprecating his master's
wrath: 'I was only a-looking for a bit
of my ear as come off when you fired
that shot thru the door, sir.'
SHE WANTED THE CHANGE
The London Telegraph tells of a
small girl who entered a grocer's shop
in Whitechapel and said:
"Please, sir, I wants 'arf a pound
of butter and a penn'orth of cheese,
and muvver says she will send a shil
ling in when farver comes home."
"All right," replied the man.
"But," continued the child, "muv
ver wants the change, cos she 'as got
to put a penny in the gas meter."
THE MP^STEAPQLIS tTOURNAL
HIS LORDSHIP'S AMIDSHD?
Ambassador Choate tells a story of
the bishop of Rochester, Eng., the di
vine who was so fond of cricket that
he used to play the game with an ex
pert local team.
It appears that one day when the
bishop was batting the bowler pitched
very wide.
"Please keep the ball in the par-
ish!" commanded the bishop testily.
The next ball the bowler sent in
caught the right reverend gentleman
full in the waistband, whereupon the
bowler observed:
I think that's somewhere about the
diocese, my lord."Harpers.
The natives sent out by the cannibal king to waylay the explorer were terrified
by the sudden appearance of a roaring lion
And then the explorer passed!
REV. FATHER KIELTY'S WIT
The Rev. Francis M. Kielty, rector
of the Church of the Holy Angels, St.
Louis, who died recently, was a good
deal of a wit, says an exchange. Father
Kielty began his sermon one Sunday
morning by announcing in a voice full
of pathos that he had a confession to
make.
I mi^ht as well make a clean breast
of it," he said.
As the congregation gasped, he waved
in the air a document, signed and sealed
to resemble an order of court.
Yes, I mean it,'' he continued, as if
to kill any lingering doubts, and then,
pointing thru one of the stained win
dows, continued:
That alley out there has been paved,
and the city has sued me for the alley
money.''
CROQUET, NOT GOLF
A new golf sory is chronicled. It
was a twosome. The player who drove
off first was bow-legged. The second,
in driving off, did not notice that his
opponent had got in front of him, and
the ball ran between the opponent's
legs.
Turning round in anger, the bow
legged one said, "Here, mun, that's no
golf!"
"Weel," said the other, "if it's no
golf, it's croquet! "Tit-Bits.
GEORGEHE TRIES SO HARD TO PLEASE HER.
THE HARMLESS STORY MAN
George Augustus Sala was at a dinner
party once where one of his fellow
guests was a man prone to relating long
winded but entirely harmless stories.
Taking advantage of some chance re
mark in the general conversation, this
man said:
"That reminds me of an anecdote I
once heard. There was
"One moment, my dear sir," inter
rupted Sala with exaggerated courtesy.
If the story you mean is improper we
have all heard it and if it is not improp
er we don't care to hear it."
Ally Sloper.
BACHELORS ORGANIZE
The young men of Sterling, not to be
outdone by the score of young women
who organized the "Matrimonial Help
club," have organized a young men's
"Betterment club," the object of which
is to promote matrimony and at the
same time guide the unwary young man.
In this club there are now twenty
young men, the same number of mem
bers as in the girls' club.
The club will pass upon the merits of
the women eligible for matrimony. It
will be determined whether the girl
can bake and mend and keep house in
addition to playing whist and attending
the theater. If she be addicted to jew
elry or frivolous she will be blacklisted.
Sterling (111.) Correspondent New
York World.
HE WOULD'T LET GO
When Rudyard Kipling was a 1&-
year-old his father took him on a sea
voyage, and as Kipling senior suffered
badly from sea-sickness, he left the boy
to his own devices. Presently a tre
mendous commotion was heard and the
boatswain dashed into Mr. Kipling's
cabin, shouting at the top of his voice:
"Mr. Kipling, your boy has crawled
out on the yardarm! If he lets go
he'll drown to a certainty!"
"Yes," said the sufferer, falling back
on his pillow, "but he won't let go!"
M88^^
Tricks of Trade
Pearson's Weekly,
MEATSHOP RIVALRY.
In a Lancashire town people1
were
much amused at the seeming bitter ri
valry between two meatshops in one
of the leading streets.
At one, only English meat was sold,
while at the other it was all Australian
and on Saturday nights passers-by were
regularly treated to the spectacle of the
English butcher walking to the middle
of the street to shake his fist at his
antipodean rival.
People came from all parts of the
town to patronize the shop of the Eng
lishman, which consequently did a roar
ing trade. They looked upon the Aus
tralian as an interloper, until it leaked
out that both shops belonged to the
same man, and that the meat sold in
both was Australian: but, in one, Eng
lish prices were paid for it,
The unscrupulous butcher found this
trick immensely helpful to his trade,
trebling his sales and his profits until,
of course, he was found out.
A SEASICKNESS CURE
One of the most cunning of trade
tricks was once performed on a mail
boat plying between Calais and Dover.
The sea becoming rough, a pretty and
well-dressed young ladv suddenly
showed signs of an acute attack of sea
sickness, groaning and screaming as if
in great agony.
After watching her for a few min
utes, a gentleman, who was apparently
a stranger, approached the sufferer, and
"Why," cried Cholly, "I'm hanged
if that isn't my little Phyllis there
hanging on to another fellow's arm.
I'll murder him!"
But it wasn't another fellow after
all! Only a harmless, innocent paling.
Ally Sloper.
offered her a lozenge, which he assured
her would ease her pain. The girl at
first hesitated to take it, but finally did
so, with marvelous results.
Almost as soon as she had swallowed
the lozenge, she sat up, all smiles, and
ordered the steward to bring her some
ham sandwiches ind a bottle of ale.
Other passengers were so struck bv
the extraordinary cure, that they in
quired of the gentleman responsible for
it what the remedy was. He at once
announced himself as an agent for its
sale and in a short space of time dis
posed of all his boxes of lozenges at
the substantial price of 7 shillings and
sixpence each.
When the boat reached Dover, the
purchasers were not a little, surprised
to see the young lady and 'the agent
walk off arm in arm.
VALUE IN THE EXTRA "O".
A wide-awake publican in a London
suburb materially increased his trade
by a smart and amusing, but perfectly
legitimate, trick. At the entrance to
the proper portion' of his premises he
put out a sign, "Saloon Bar," so that
he who passed might read.
Nine out of every ten persons who
noticed this atrocious outrage on or
thography could not resist the tempta
tion to go inside and call the land
lord's attention to it, with the object
of getting the superfluous letter de
leted.
Naturally, each first of all ordered a
drink and on objecting to the extra
"o," -was informed by "mine host"
that he would not part with it on any
account, his receipts being largely in
creased by the people who daily came
in to get the spelling mistake cor
rected. He had reason to be satis
fied with the success of his artful ruse.
WORKING UP A POTATO TASTE
The way in which Parmentier created
a demand for potatoes in France would
have done credit to the wiliest of wily
tradesmen. Nothing would at first in
duce the simple-minded peasants to cul
tivate the popular tuber. They would
not listen to lectures on its virtues, nor
accept seed potatoes free of cost for
planting.
Parmentier therefore decided to get
the better of their prejudice by artifice,
and with this object leased as much
land as he could round Paris, and
planted it with potatoes. Just before
the ripenihg of the crop, he posted
watchers round the fields and issued no
tices that all persons stealing potatoes
would be severely punished, the crop
being intended for the tables of the
king and nobles.
Such delicacies, continued the notice,
were too good for ignorant peasants,
who would touch them at their peril.
Of course, watch was only kept during
the day, and at night the fields were
robbed right and left by the peasants,
who were curious to taste the strange
vegetable, and jealous that it should
be reserved for their betters.
As soon as they .had tasted the suc
culent tubers, the pilferers were only
too anxious to plant as many as they
could possibly purchase, the wily Par
mentier's scheme thus Succeeding be
yond the most extravagant anticipa
tions.
AN EXPENSIVE PAPER
During the siege of Kimberley the
editor of the only daily paper there was
oftenhard put to find enough news. One
day in a clubroom he found Cecil
Rhodes reading a fairly new paper from
Cape Town. He borrowed it and rushed
to his own office, where it soon arneare
as a special edition, selling like hot
cakes. That same evening he met Mr.
Rhodes, who inquired:
"Where's my Cape Town paper?"
"Oh, I cut it up for the printers,"
was the reply.
"Please don't do that again," said
Rhodes, mildly. That paper came thru
sun native runners and cost me &L0QQ."
Do You Believe
in Signs
No baby will bt
bright unlets it
falls out of bed
first year.
On Sale
Exclusively
at
ililiSl^
TRADE MASK
Shoes often meet their worst
experience while still new. Right'
then is determined the extent of
their future usefulness.
We cannot foresee accidents,
but we can be prepared for them.
Crossetts are made so wellof
such good materialsthat hard
service only shows them in their
true light.
Call on our agent In your city, or write us,/
LEWIS A. CROSSETT, Inc.,
North Abington, Mass.
COLUMBUS, OHIO, Oct. i.
MR. JOHN SEBASTIAN,
Pass. Traffic Mgr. Rock Island-Frisco Line*,
CHICAGO.
Dear Sir:
On our trip, Sept. 18, to find the true sit
uation of the Texas Gulf Coast Country, all
of the party of twenty were agreeably sur
prised and found nothing exaggerated.
EVERY ONE IN THE PARTY
BOUGHT LAND.
Yours truly,
RAILWAY.
Offers a number of attractive trips to Cal
ifornia, Mexico, Florida. Etc. Choice of
four Through Tourist Sleeping Cars to Cal
ifornia every week. Fall information from.
C.V.FISHER, M.F. MONTGOMERY,
City Passenger Agent, City Passenger Agent,
Cor. Nicollet Aoe.&'Bth St. Cor. BthS-RoS'tBtt.
Minneapolis. St. Paul*
This Man Writes
About the Texas
Gulf Coast Country:
GEORGE RHUE.
Wouldn't YOU like to Have a farm In this country of sure
crops, abundant crops and early crops
Now the land is cheap and you can get it on easy terms.
Twenty acres will cost you about $500. The cost of clearing
it is about $5 an acre. The cost of water for irrigation varies.
lYou may want an artesian well of your own you may get
water from some river or you may get it from your neighbor.
But the cost is not great, and those who have tried it have
netted from the first crop a sum which has paid all expenses
and left a good surplus.
_-___ Take a trip down there and
TOlollfi4V#tf^\fl^4*ftt1kfsee for yourself-that's the best
I7MIM5T VACUUM.*?
I ^^^""*#1
torn
He has seen it and
is satisfied,
"Every one in the
party bought land*
That was their judg-]
ment of its merit**
kFrom
a
ll-
Minneapolis
and
St. Paul
START RIGHT
ON YOUR WINTER TRIP
CHICAGO
GREAT
WESTERN
^l sell
montn'
eacr^i
way ve
GsW^JiMi Iff AfllPIHPfr ^ay.
first an third Tues-
^E
^****lpIl. V e^MMXfM.4VAround-trip
ticketsnto
an1*point la
the Gulf Coast Country and re-
lowig f*
3
a
From Chicago, $25.00
From St. Louis, 20.00
From Kansas City, 20.00
From Peoria, 23.00
St. Paul, 27.50
From Minneapolis, 27.50
These tickets will be good 30
days and they will permit you to
stop over at any point.
Let me send you our books describing the wonderful crops pro
duced in this marvelous country. Don't delay, write me to-day.
JOHN SEBASTIAN, Passenger Traffic Manager.
ROC ISLAND-FRISCO LINES
1101 Salle St. Station, Chicago, III.,
or 1101 Frisco Bldg., St. Louis, Mo.
HOTEL VICTORIA
Broadway, Fifth Avenue and 27th St, NEW YORK.
The only Hotel in Manhattan fronting on Broadway and Fifth Avenue. I
EUROPEAN PLAM.^+.^vtv&fr. GEORGE W. SWEENEY, Proprietor*
5
IRTHECEITU OFTNE SHOP-
PING DISTRICT
A modern first-dam
HoteL Complete la
all Its appointments.
Furnishings and dec.
orations entirely
new throughout. Ao
commodstlons (or
500 guests 150
suites with baths.
Booms $l.GO day up
with baths. $2.30
up. Hot and cold
water and telephone
In every room. Cui
sine unexcelled.
ABSOLUTELY FIREPROOF
iH